Weddingbee Blog

Chocochoco House makes these adorable purse shaped chocolates that are perfect for bridal shower favors!

A box of 2 favors is $6.50, with a discount for bulk purchases.

(via Brides July/August 2006)

There’s an interesting article in sfgate about the popularity of strapless wedding gowns, and how they’re just not for everyone. Yet they are by far the most popular style of wedding dress, perhaps due to Hollywood’s infatuation with strapless gowns on the red carpet.

“When I go to (the bridal) market, so much of what I see is strapless,” Alvarez says. “You really have to be in great shape. You shouldn’t be overly busty and not too fleshy in the arms. … but when I talk to designers, when I say, ‘What’s up with all the strapless?’ they tell me that’s what sells.”

I’d always imagined that I’d get married in a strapless gown. Maybe I’ve been brainwashed into thinking that strapless gowns are the epitome of the traditional wedding. But V-necks and halters just look strange on me, so it seemed like a no-brainer.

“When you put on a strapless dress, it feels like a ball gown, it really feels like a once-in-a-lifetime dress,” says Juli Alvarez, fashion editor of Modern Bride magazine.

But the article also goes on to say that strapless dresses are:

• the most difficult to photograph because they only look good from the front view and when brides are standing completely still
• almost always ill-fitting
• require the most alterations
• only look good on women who are in shape, not too heavy, not too thin, not too short, and not too flat-chested
• technically inappropriate for religious ceremonies and are considered “racy”

I got married in a strapless gown - the first strapless anything I’d ever worn - and it did feel like a once-in-a-lifetime dress. Maybe I’m just too boring and traditional, but I love me a beautiful strapless gown.

via nymetro:

Even though Mr. Caterpillar is off in the wilds of Dublin for the week, I’ve decided to continue our Reservoir running. It is totally no fun. Especially since it’s been 90 degrees and humid in the city.

Today I was on my way to the Reservoir when I noticed I was not in possession of the proper gear — I was sports bra-less! Which, when you consider I’ve been wearing the same sports bra since 1994 (really), is actually not such a big deal. In any case, I was right by Patagonia on Columbus, so I decided to stop in.

Best. Decision. Ever.

They have amazing things! I got this there

and it’s my new best friend.

Incidentally, I have a feeling Mr. Caterpillar is planning some sort of sport-adventure honeymoon, so I probably should be familiarizing myself with Patgonia’s offerings anyway.

I was registering with the Cartier site, so I could be notified when new pieces of their Love jewelry are released. In the title field, the only options offered were “Miss” and Mrs.”

Wow - I’ve been choosing “Ms.” for as long as I can remember, and can’t recall a time when it wasn’t an option! It’s not that I mind being called “Mrs.” at all. I suppose I’m just used to the whole idea behind “Ms.” - you can’t tell if a guy is married by his title so why shouldn’t women have the same option?

What do you think? Should title fields always include Miss, Mrs. and Ms., or are we just too pc for our own good? Do you have any preference on being called Ms. or Mrs. after marriage?

Cartier’s LOVE line.

I saw a couple of these Cynthia Rowley shoes on Just My Cup of Tea today. Love the first two. The beige shoe would be gorgeous with a Monique Lhuillier dress with a colored sash.

surprise, tiki, sonny,
trilogy, tia, tiki,
tatyana, tantra, sav.

I’m getting ready to go to a destination wedding in a month. What is the etiquette for purchasing a gift? Is it the same as a regular wedding, to cover the cost of your food (and is this true)? Being newlyweds, we’re in a budget crunch and we’re not sure what to do. Don’t get me wrong, we will take a gift… but how much should we spend?

~~~

As destination weddings become more popular, I’ve found that many couples request that their guests don’t bring any gift at all to offset travelling costs. I think this is a very kind gesture that all couples having destination weddings should consider.

As far as the “cover the cost of your food” rule, a recent New York Times article on high wedding costs stated:

Peggy Post… outright debunked “the old myth” about giving a wedding gift that is the equivalent of what the couple spent on you for the reception. “It’s about how well you know the couple and their families - and what you can afford,” she said.

THIS is especially true… when it comes to deciding what your budget will bear when you are invited to a destination wedding.

Your first step should be to find out if the couple has registered. If they have, feel free to choose one of the smaller items off the registry. If they don’t expect any gifts but you feel bad going empty-handed, you might want to give them something small like a picture frame, scrapbook, or an anniversary book. Make sure you have any gifts shipped to their home so they don’t have to carry it back to the States.

In the end, I’m sure the most important thing to your friends will be your presence at their wedding.

Hope this helps and good luck!

For more on wedding guest etiquette, check out theknot’s new guest guide.

I’ve been a fan of Claire Pettibone’s devastatingly romantic, vintage inspired wedding gowns for quite some time. She is definitely going to be the next big thing in wedding dress design.

Claire got her start designing lingerie. She has some beautiful, feminine pieces that are perfect for your wedding night or honeymoon.

• The Beckhams secretly renew their wedding vows.
• Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban confirm they are in Australia to marry amidst speculation that Kidman is pregnant.
• Rod Stewart and Penny Lancaster to marry next spring.
• Jack Black was scared of planning a big wedding.
• Oprah upsets family by crashing their wedding.
• Sirius to broadcast couple’s wedding music.
• 20 brides-to-be run through Times Square obstacle course to win $25,000 in WE’s Running of the Bridezillas.
• Chicago couple celebrates their 75th wedding anniversary.
• Bride organizes 5K run for her and guests on the morning of her wedding.
• How to save money on your honeymoon.
• 10 tips for creating your registry.
• Til Debt Do Us Part.
• Colorado legislators seek to change law that allows girls as young as 12 and boys as young as 14 year to have a legal common law marriage.
• 16 year old’s plans to marry a 20 year old West Bank man she met thru MySpace are thwarted.
• Homeland Security causes marriage delays for thousands seeking foreign spouse visas.

Hello!

I still have a lot of cylinder vases left. Let me know if you need any. You would have to come by and pick them up in Jersey City.

1. 10 1/4″(16 left) $3.00 each
2. 10″ (9 left) $4.00 each
3. 9″ (5 left) $2.50 each
4. 7 1/2″ (4 left) $1.50 each
5. 6″ (15 left) $2.00 each

I have a bunch of bridal magazines if someone wants them…for FREE! None of the pages were ripped out of any of them. I was going to throw them out but I thought maybe someone could use them. Local only and you would have to come to Jersey City to pick them up or I could meet you by the World Trade Center Path Station. If I can’t get rid of any of these maybe I’ll have a sidewalk sale?

I’ll even throw this in. This cost me $11.00. I didn’t even realize how much it was till the girl rang it through and there were like 13 people in line behind me.

Contact me at: ladybug@weddingbee.com

According to a survey conducted by David’s Bridal, finding a wedding venue topped the list of wedding related stress, followed by choosing the perfect dress. Meanwhile a poll conducted by Leflein Associates found that 2/3 of survey respondents said finding flattering bridesmaids dresses for different body types were the biggest problem. (Pittsburgh-Tribune Review via wedlog)

I gotta say bridesmaids dresses were definitely my number one cause of stress. I had three bridesmaids with very different body types, and we all lived in different cities. Finding the perfect dress was a challenge indeed.

A few years back, Mr. Butterfly and I took a mini trip to Miami for our annual summer vacation. We ate at the Blue Door restaurant in the Delano Hotel (a favorite of celebs) and hung out at the bar at the pool.

I fell in love with the Delano and its’ crisp white bungalows.

So for our honeymoon, we are thinking of going and staying at the Delano Hotel (not in the bungalows near the pool, cuz they run $10K a night or something equally ridiculous).

Then, after 3 nights in Miami, we will head over to the Ritz Carlton in Grand Cayman Islands!!

4 more nights here, then back to reality.

It sounds like a beautiful trip! We won’t be able to go first class all the way - but at least this way, we can get away for a week! I wonder if telling people that you are on your honeymoon will get you upgrades? I hear it all the time - does it work?

We featured 2Pyromaineiacs’ super cool matches awhile back, and the founder Reiko wrote me a most wonderful email thanking me. Today I received a little surprise package from her in the mail - 2 Simply Divine votive candles, 1 Glimmers of Light travel candle, 2 boxes of Glimmer Stiks, and 2 boxes of Haute Sticks!

The Glimmer Stiks and Haute Stiks boxes are shaped like little purses.

Inside the purse, you’ll find three individual boxes of matches each with a different design.

They’re oh so cute - a set of matches paired with a candle would be a nice bridal shower favor.

2Pyromaineiacs carries a huge selection of matches, so you could give matches as wedding favors (they have masculine designs too ;)) or maybe set them out for lighting sparklers or cigars.

Thanks Reiko~ I love them!

I got my color samples!!

Ok, I am way too excited about this for a normal person (but I’m not normal, so it’s fine). You see, once I had decided on a color scheme, I felt that I could move on to the rest of the projects for the wedding. But, how do I select the colors to match the flowers without ever seeing the flowers in the first place?

So my intention is to have as many color samples as I can get my hands on, and then start matching it to the floral arrangements when I go to my next meeting (where I will see my centerpieces).

For invitations, I decided to use some sort of orange, ecru or cream, and champagne. I ordered these from Remote Assistance. They are so great because the samples came within a week, and you can order by color groups. Below are the orange color group, and the white/cream color group. I paid almost $30 for them, which may seem like a lot, but to me, they were worth it.

I really like the ones with some sort of print on them. But I’m not sure if I am going to use it yet.

For my BM dresses, I needed to see the actual shade of champagne, because they vary greatly depending on where you go. I really liked working with Coco Myles, so I ordered two samples from them (ivory and champagne). They sent their samples for free!

I really love the champagne color, but I have to see it against the flowers before I make my final decision.

I’ve ordered one more sample set of invitation colors, and I will order more fabric swatches, if I can find ones I like. If all goes well, by next week, I will have ordered all the paper I need for invitations and hopefully my BM dresses as well!